M2/M3 vs MP ? Overrated ?

Trius said:
I can easily have GAS for an MP. But I handled an R4 this past weekend and was really impressed.

And I miss Magus, especially his style.
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He sure was RFF's version of Dorothy Parker! 😛

I miss him too! 🙂
 
proenca said:
Now the M2 and M3... These are regarded as the best leica ever - construction quality and beauty. Whereas the last is a purely subjective matter, I didnt find it in the quality to surpass the MP. Rather lower actually.

Don't get me wrong. Its brilliant made and you can feel the quality of the thing. But then comparing with my MP I feel the MP is nicer, a refined version of the M3. Now I can see where the MP comes from.
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I am a Nikon Nut(as you can see by my name) and have never used a Leica, Although I owned a CL for a short period.

I am assuming you have a NEW MP and NOT the Vintage Model!

Are you really comparing a NEW MP to an old M3??

Apples and Oranges.
Different beasts.
Only Common by the M...NEW MP is a refined version of the M3, which was made before the MP, the original MP.
50 Years apart🙂

Kiu
 
proenca said:
Can't be value for money 🙂 for that you would NEVER buy a Leica 🙂
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That's the beauty of buying used Leicas....it's the free market that sets the value.

On new Leicas, of course, Solms set the price. But no one can ever say that fair market value on a used Leica is a poor value for the money...because fair market value, is by definition, fair. 🙂
 
I paid far more for my MP a la carte then my M2. Not sorry in the least I bought the MP and tend to use it a little more these due a couple of new 50's. The MP is blk chrm....light and sleek....has the .085...w/ a 1.25 mag it suits my 75/90 lenses just beautifully. I'm crazy about it. My M2 is sweet, but heavier. The shutter release on the MP is definitely smoother and shutter is better damped.
 
Magus was kicked off the island... well, actually, he apparently jumped off himself, but then returned as Betram3 and Betram4. No sightings recently, though. I miss him too, kinda, but then kinda not.
 
Hello Anna,

So nice to see you on this male dominated forum, we need more female photogs with Leicas to even the status quo a little ... I just got your camera phone email pics of your new baby ... my old baby!

Aren't M3's just the best thing to have with a cup of tea? 😀
 
Oh my, if I could afford an MP or M6 I'd buy one. Having been lucky enough to find a good M2 some 35 years ago, it is my only M-mount. I'm very much into LTM these days and love a Bessa R and Fed-2c. Finally, I've bought a IIIf which will be here soon.

When my father was in Law school, the lawyers had to know Latin. He taught us, "Degustibus non es disputandem." You cannot dispute taste... or, it's different strokes for different folks. There's no good and bad here. It's like a Chevy and a Cadillac... both will get you there 😀
Cheers, Mike
 
All I know is that I have fondled, played with, and shot with plenty of other Leicas, including the new MP. If anyone wants to give me one, I'd be happy to take it- and I'd shoot with it; but I sold my M6, and currently I shoot with two M3's. I have no Leica GAS at all. (Well, I am sort-of looking for a really good deal on an M2...)
 
EmilGil said:
Oh bugger, please stop! I don't need a M2! :bang:

(Now patiently waiting for a few people to say that "everybody needs a M2 or two"! 🙂)
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The seed is sown... Denying it won't make it go away... 🙂
 
Call me crazy, but the first time I hold a Leica, I liked the M6 way better than the M3 I tried in the store. The M3 seemed more "raw" than the M6. Adding that the M6 has a meter, I decided to buy one (I bought a M6 from a RFF member).
I've never tried a MP. Whish I could, but the M6 has cured my GAS for a long time. It's a superb camera, with a great feeling.
 
kevin m said:
Funny that so many people say Leica's superiority is in the lenses....Frankly, I think it's in the bodies.

I had many third party lenses for my M bodies, and by and large they gave much better performance per dollar spent than my pricey Leica lenses.

The bodies are another story. I have yet to try a Zeiss Ikon body, but the other bodies out there - including the ridiculously overpriced Nikon RF's - simply don't match the quality of the classic M's. My Bessa L and R were simply crap. Not a big surprise considering they cost about the same as a Leica lens cap, but still... The newer Cosina products are better, but I'd rather put the $500 they cost towards the best RF body ever made rather than bitch about how loud and cheap the Bessas are.

All IMHO, of course. 😀
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I think it's still in the lens if you look at it this way:

If you slap a bad Jupiter on the MP, what will you get?
But if you put a summilux on a Bessa, I bet you'll get the same pictures as the ones you get with the MP.

With bodies, you can get used to and later take advantage of the "weakness" and quirks, but with lenses, you can't get used to a lens with a haze and fungus no matter what you do.
 
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peter_n said:
Yep, me too. Totally underwhelmed with M2/M3. Not only is an in-camera meter really useful, but AE is too! 😀
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Buf for people who doesn't care about using built-in meters, M3 is more solidly built and has smoother operation. So depends on where your priority is. 😀
 
I was all set to sell my MP Hammertone that was recently servived by DAG after aquiring a late M5 that I had serviced by Golden Touch. The lack of a market for this semi-collectable MP forced me to sell the M5 instead which I sold for what I put into it. No big regret though. The MP came back better and smoother than new, as good as an M3 but with a meter. The MP viewfinder is brighter with a touch more contrast than a cleaned M5 due to the additional coating added to the VF optics of the MP thus suppressing any internal reflections. The M5 may be better built but the MP feels a little better in my hands and should last as long as film is made, hopefully another 20-30 years.
 
Personally, I see no difference in how solidly built any Leica M is...from my old M2 I used to have, to my current M3, to my M7...they are all solidly built. There are differences of course, I've seen some M3s that operate smoother than others...but similar age cameras with similar usage and care are really pretty darn close in terms of smoothness of operation.
 
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